Piano-moving device.



No. 78,626. Patented Nov. l8, I902.

T. E. FRENCH.

PIANO MOVING DEVICE.

(Application filed May 1, 1902-) [(Ilo llndeI.)

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TOMSON E. FRENCH, OF DAVENPORT, IOWA.

PLANO-"MOVING DEVlCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 713,626, dated November 18, 1902.

Application filed May 1, 1902. Serial No. 106,494. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, TOMSON E. FRENCH, a citizen of the United States of America, and aresident of Davenport, in the county of Scott and State of Iowa, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Piano-Moving Devices; and I do declare the following specification, taken in connection with the drawings, making a part of the same, to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to devices for moving pianos in which the piano to be moved is secured upon a truck or frame by straps or similar means and which truck, with the piano so secured thereon, is adapted to be placed upon a carriage having wheels and to be propelled by means thereof.

As it is often necessary to move pianos up or down Stairways, it is important that the truck-bed be smooth and unobstructed on its under side, so as to allow the truck-bed to slide on the stairs.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide a truck having a truck-bed whose under side is perfectly smooth and free from all obstructions.

Another object is to provide a truck or frame which shall take up the least possible space in addition to the space occupied by the piano itself. This object I have found of great importance where low hatchways are encountered in moving pianos up or down stairs.

Another object is to provide the carriage with mechanism by which the carriage may be readily and firmly secured to the headboard of the truck and as easily removed therefrom. In practice I have found this object of great importance, because it is often found advantageous to turn a piano on end and move it while in that position.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a suitable and convenient grip or handhold by which the truckbed may be manually grasped while the piano is on end. Owing to the necessity for having the under side of the truck-bed smooth, the grip or handhold is made removable therefrom and attached thereto only when the piano is being moved while on end.

The general object of my invention is to provide a device for moving pianos which shall be simple in construction, easily manipulated, and which shall occupy but little space in ad dition to the space occupied by the piano.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side View of the moving truck mounted upon the carriage and showing an upright piano secured upon the truck. Fig. 2 is an end view of the truck and carriage viewed in the direction of the arrow at Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a View of the truck and piano on end with the carriage secured to the headboard of the truck. Fig. 4 is an elevation of the headboard of the truck, showing the stationary handle thereon. Fig. 5 is a plan view of the carriage, showing the hangers and the lock for securing said carriage to the headboard. Fig. 6 is an inside View of the carriage on the line a; a: of Fig. 5, viewed in the direction of the arrow at Fig. 5, showing a side View of one of the hangers and the lock in an upright position. Fig. 7 is an elevation of the removable grip, and Fig. 8 a transverse cross-section thereof on the line Y Y of Fig. 7.

Referring to the drawings, in which like parts are designated by the same letters, A represents a piano.

B is the headboard of the truck.

a a are cushions or blocks secured to the headboard and against which the piano is adapted to rest.

0 is the truck-bed.

b b are blocks secured upon the truck-bed.

c is a metal loop secured across the truckbed, so as to admit the passage of a strap between the loop and bed.

D is an adjustable block mounted to slide upon the truck-bed by means of small angleirons d cl, secured to the ends of the block D and corresponding grooves in the edges of the truck-bed C, as shown in Fig. 2, so that the block D may be moved longitudinally on the truck-bed, but cannot be raised therefrom.

E represents a horizontal handle-bar secured to the headboard B by means of brackets e e. The dotted vertical and horizontal lines indicate the straps by which the piano is secured to the truck.

F represents the carriage upon which the truck with the piano secured thereto is mounted.

The side pieces ffof the carriage are a out down at their top inner edges, so that the truck-bed may rest therein, as shown in Fig. 2. When the piano is to be moved while in an upright position, the carriage is placed under the truck-bed, near the longitudinal center thereof, as shown in Fig. l; but in practice I have found it generally desirable to move the piano across a' fioor or smooth space while on end, and this necessitates placing the carriage under the headboard, as shown in Fig. 3. I secure the carriage to the headboard in the following novel manner:

G G represent hangers which are secured to the inner sides of the side pieces ff of the carriage. These hangers are beveled or out out, as shown in Fig. 6.

g and g are the connecting-pieces of the carriage F, and to the inside of piece 9 is secured,by means of a small hinge or otherwise, the lock-piece II.

In attaching the carriage to the headboard the piano will either be standing upright or balanced on one of its corners by the persons engaged in moving it. The carriage is then placed against the headboard, so that the points of the hangers will catch between the headboard and the handle-bar E. The carriage is then lowered until the hangers rest upon the handle-bar, as indicated in Fig. 6. The adjustable lock-piece H is then turned upon its hinge, so that it catches under the handle-bar. In this way the carriage may be securely and easily attached to the headboard of the truck.

While the piano is being moved on end it is often found necessary to take hold of the truck-bed, which at such times stands vertically, (as seen in Fig. 2;) but owing to the necessity of having the outer or under side of the truck-bed entirely smooth while moving a piano up or down stairs stationary handles cannot be secured thereto. Hence I have devised a novel and practical grip, which is easily applied and as easily removed. I represents this grip, which consists of the handles it h, cross-bars i 'i, pivotally connected by a pin or rivet j and terminating in the concavo-convex jaws k 7.6, as clearly shown in Figs. 7 and 8. The method of grasping the truck-bed with this grip will be apparent by a reference to the drawings.

It will now be seen that when the piano is placed upon the truck by raising the end of the piano the adjustable block D may be moved forward or backward, as may be found necessary to obtain a firm rest or support for the piano, that the piano may be propelled while in an upright position or while turned on end, that the truck-bed is entirely free from obstructions on its under side, and that convenient means are provided for grasping the truck-bed when the same is turned on end.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent l. A piano-moving device comprising a truck composed of a bed and headboard, the bed being free from obstructions on its under side and having an adjustable cushion-block on its upper side, the headboard provided with cushion-blocks and a stationary handle, a removable carriage adapted to sustain the truck and to be propelled therewith and provided with means by which said carriage may be secured to the headboard and handle thereon,removable means for manually grasping the truck-bed, all for the purposes stated.

2. In a device for moving pianos, the combination of a truck composed of a headboard and bed, the headboard having a handle secured to the outside thereof and cushionblocks on its inner side, the bed being free from obstruction on its under side, having one or'more stationary cushion-blocks and an adjustable block on its upper side, a removable carriage upon which the bed of the truck is adapted to rest and having hangers and a look by which said carriage may be attached to the stationary handle upon the headboard for the purposes stated.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name, this 25th day of April, 1902, in the presence of two Witnesses.

TOMSON E. FRENCH.

In presence of- T. A. MURPHY, I. O. ANDERSON. 

